Short Interest in Skechers U.S.A., Inc. (NYSE:SKX) Decreases By 22.1%

Skechers U.S.A., Inc. (NYSE:SKX) was the recipient of a large decline in short interest in December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 4,240,000 shares, a decline of 22.1% from the December 15th total of 5,440,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 2,000,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 2.1 days. Approximately 3.3% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on SKX shares. Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Skechers U.S.A. from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of Skechers U.S.A. in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $65.00 price target on the stock. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Skechers U.S.A. from $88.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Skechers U.S.A. from $81.00 to $84.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on Skechers U.S.A. from $83.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Skechers U.S.A. currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $78.42.

Skechers U.S.A. Stock Performance

Shares of SKX stock traded down $1.66 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $69.64. The company had a trading volume of 1,507,090 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,574,784. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $66.38 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $65.58. Skechers U.S.A. has a one year low of $55.67 and a one year high of $75.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 1.96 and a quick ratio of 1.25. The company has a market capitalization of $10.51 billion, a PE ratio of 17.15, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 1.19.

Skechers U.S.A. (NYSE:SKX) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The textile maker reported $1.26 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.15 by $0.11. Skechers U.S.A. had a net margin of 7.19% and a return on equity of 13.71%. The company had revenue of $2.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.31 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.93 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 16.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Skechers U.S.A. will post 4.24 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, President Michael Greenberg sold 10,274 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $67.48, for a total value of $693,289.52. Following the completion of the sale, the president now owns 149,327 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,076,585.96. This trade represents a 6.44 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, COO David Weinberg sold 8,219 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $67.48, for a total value of $554,618.12. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 122,211 shares in the company, valued at $8,246,798.28. The trade was a 6.30 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 24.75% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. UMB Bank n.a. grew its position in shares of Skechers U.S.A. by 423.3% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 450 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 364 shares during the last quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Skechers U.S.A. by 52.9% during the 3rd quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 864 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $58,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Skechers U.S.A. by 778.1% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,001 shares of the textile maker’s stock valued at $69,000 after purchasing an additional 887 shares during the period. Brooklyn Investment Group acquired a new stake in Skechers U.S.A. in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $67,000. Finally, Quarry LP increased its position in Skechers U.S.A. by 44.6% in the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,187 shares of the textile maker’s stock worth $82,000 after buying an additional 366 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.96% of the company’s stock.

About Skechers U.S.A.

Skechers U.SA, Inc designs, develops, markets, and distributes footwear for men, women, and children worldwide. The company operates through Wholesale and Direct-to-Consumer segments. It offers footwear under Skechers Hands Free Slip-ins, Skechers Arch Fit, and Skechers Air-Cooled Memory Foam brands.